Hello OzBs š
I got my vehicle serviced at Ultra Tune and got an SMS for free 12 month road side assistance. I was wondering if anyone here has had any experience with their road-side service??
I have been paying NRMA $9.99 every month and have only used them once in the last 6 years. I was wondering if I can rely on Ultra Tune and cancel NRMA, i.e. only if Ultra Tune Roadside is reliable.
Link: https://www.ultratune.com.au/get-free-12-month-roadside-assiā¦
Thanks.
Not sure that's why asking….
could go right to the source and ask Ultratune…
used them once in the last 6 years
Modern cars are pretty reliable and unless they are one of some specific categories won't break down much. IMO roadside assist was a lot more useful in days past when all cars broke down semi-regularly. I haven't had it for over 20years. IMO it's worth considering whether to have it at all.
The only time I had to call NRMA, my relatively modern car battery had died while parked at a shopping centre. Turned out that the battery was also installed by NRMA and it was just put of warranty (3 years a 2 months) so basically the new large battery was at my expense and was pretty expensive.
In the event of a call to us for roadside assistance, and where is it deemed (at the sole discretion of the contractor or Ultra Tune Roadside Assistance) that the cause of a roadside callout relates to a lack of timely maintenance and/or an un-roadworthiness related issue and/or where the fault could have been reasonably attended to and prevented by timely action prior to breakdown, the callout will be provided at the cost of the driver
Service Limits: means to the extent of a standard call-out and/or tow in any particular country region, city or town. As a guide, this may include:
- All Greater Metropolitan Cities including metro satellite cities, also major regional cities & towns ā up to 10kms* to your ISSUING Ultra Tune centre or other Ultra Tune Roadside Assistance accredited service provider.
- Country and Remote Regions- up to 20kms* ROUND TRIP from the roadside attendantās depot to the Vehicle breakdown and return.
- *In each region, the local roadside contractor will apply their own local āstandard calloutā conditions. The service limits will vary according to the local standard callout conditions which may at times be lower than the guide provided here. The driver will pay for any callout and/or towing āexcess chargesā that may apply at the time.
Lol within 10-20kms of an Ultratune…?!
The 10KM limit is kind of a joke in Sydney and NSW in general.
so asking for a jump start will incur a cost?
We used it recently for my sister's car.
Basically they just want to send a tow truck and get it to the nearest Ultratune. 10kms was free and I think it was $7 per additional Km on the tow truck.
The Ultratune location that was receiving it told us in future to call them first as they might be able to diagnose and fix the problem without needing to tow it there.
All in all, it seemed pretty inefficient but the car was back on the road same day and a small fortune later.
I still think people are better off finding a good local mechanic and not using somewhere that spends money on TV ads like this trash with Mike Tyson or Charlie Sheen
NRMA has become a bit of a rip off with roadside lately
Budget direct are currently offering yearly subscription for only $76 , and if you look at the coverage it pretty much offers the same as what NRMA covers but you save yourself $44 by not going with them.
Personally speaking i bought a cheap battery tester as well as a battery charger so i can maintain charge in vehicles not driven regularly and test them to know when they might need replacing and get it swapped before it becomes a problem , I also carry a charged jump starter around "just in case" if i go on a long journey.
The only thing Roadside is good for these days really is for people who genuinely need assistance with a tyre change/jumpstart or need a tow because their car is neglected but don't want to fork out hundreds on the spot for one so going with roadside is the cheapest alternative.
As others have mentioned earlier modern day cars are generally a lot more reliable and cars in general that are serviced regularly don't cause issues that leave you stuck by the road so it's often unnecessary , the only exception to the rule is there are some new cars that actually do not have a spare tyre (not even a space saver) so if you cop some unrepairable tyre damage you have no choice but to get a tow to the nearest mechanics ..and that's when roadside truly becomes golden.
Do ultra tune just outsource to NRMA?